The Scrap Heap*

This requires an asterisk because there are certain players remaining on the free agent market that could still be quite useful, but given the proximity to spring league play and the Cubs own accelerated schedule in preparation for their little jaunt to Japan, it makes sense to get most of the critical additions in camp before full squad reporting on Valentine’s Day. Note that by this point, the available free agent list is mostly…

1. Guys who are too damn old
2. Guys who sucked recently
3. Guys who waited too long or held out for a contract that wasn’t there and are still holding out for whatever reason

I did take a look at the position player group as well as the pitching staff, but with the news that Javier Assad was slowed by a sore oblique (eww) and the Alex Bregman sweepstakes are at a standstill, I figured we’d scrape the barrel a bit and see what the Cubs might do within their supposed budget.

For position players, starting with the infielders…

• Mark Canha– The former Cal Golden Bear (yay alma mater) is probably more of a super utility guy than Cavan Biggio, and if you want a guy who can back up all the corners, he can probably be had for cheaper than his $11ish million last season. Canha is split neutral over his career but more recently has been better against left handed pitching, so that seems like a good bat to back up Matt Shaw at third base or Michael Busch at first base.
• Justin Turner– Baseball’s Yukon Cornelius is probably going to come more expensively than Canha, but does have a solid postseason record, can still stand at first base (his third base days are probably done), and like Canha will likely kill lefties.
• Anthony Rizzo– An ex-Cub favorite and sentimental pick who struggled with the Yankees more recently, maybe partly due to playing through an undiagnosed concussion, but he is of course lefthanded and you wonder if that fits on the roster…but he’s Anthony Rizzo and could bring much needed leadership even if he can’t hit like the legend of old. Long shot though.
• Alex Bregman– The persistent rumor is that the Cubs are among the finalists, and this may or may not involve moving cash to make room for his potential salary, which could also mean trading someone like Nico Hoerner, which I also really don’t like for a multitude of reasons involving defense and baserunning. Also, the qualifying offer thing when the Cubs need to replenish their farm soon is a major deterrent for me, but would it be for Jed and friends?
• Jose Iglesias– It seems he had a pretty good 2024, but he’s going to play his age 35 season this year and you expect that performance was more of a blip. That said, he can back up pretty much all the non-first base positions capably.

For the outfielders, I feel like you assume Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Kyle Tucker will take most of the reps, with Seiya Suzuki sprinkled in once or twice a week. I think if they did sign a Canha that takes care of the corners, but the priority should be backing up PCA in center without having Happ or Tucker do it. If the Cubs don’t feel like staying in-house for this, as the options don’t always inspire confidence, let’s take a look at CF-capable guys who bat righty because that’s like the only main reason to sit PCA…

• Michael A. Taylor– He can definitely play CF, just don’t expect him to hit.
• Kevin Pillar– Same, just older.
• Manuel Margot– He’s only 30, but he was flat out horrible last season and barely ever stood in CF.

Turning to starting pitchers who are on the younger side…

• Nick Pivetta– He probably should’ve just taken the QO, but now it seems he and Bregman are the only QO guys left unsigned, and while his pitch mix is pretty cool, I’m not sure this is the guy you forfeit your draft picks for.
• Spencer Turnbull– He has been bouncing around the league a bit but did pretty well for Philly last season, and seems to be a bit of a darling amongst the statheads. Which honestly makes you wonder why he doesn’t have a contract yet, so I’m not sure if that should raise alarm bells.

With relievers being sort of hit or miss, I do like what the Cubs have assembled for depth, but there are plenty of intriguing names on the market still. This includes old friend David Robertson, who probably would be signed if he wasn’t old as hell. Then there’s guys like Adam Ottavino who can still generate strikeouts but seemed to have been hit a bit harder than in the past (also on the old side), nontendered guys like Kyle Finnegan, and so forth. For the lefty pool, you have old friend Andrew Chafin, World Series lucky charm Will Smith, and Rays voodoo guy Ryan Yarbrough. Yarbrough ended last season with Toronto and seemed to do well, so that might be fun. I suppose they’re all waiting on the Cubs to decide what they might want to do re: Bregman and/or Robertson, but if the Cubs were to sign Bregman, they probably wouldn’t sign anyone else.

The first spring training press conference didn’t really reveal anything we didn’t already sort of know, so I guess just be prepared for a late night Passan bomb.